The best automatic pet feeders in the UK (2026)

Eight feeders compared on portion control, wet vs dry food, power backup and cleaning — plus an honest look at what a feeder can and cannot do for your pet.

Cat & dog care · Buying guide · Updated November 2026

By Eunrae Cho · Last reviewed 2026-11-01 · How we source this

An automatic feeder's most useful job is quieter than it sounds: serving measured meals at regular times. International Cat Care says cats naturally eat little and often, and suggests dividing the daily ration into at least five portions across 24 hours, using timed and puzzle feeders to help.

Portion control matters, too. In the PDSA Animal Wellbeing (PAW) Report 2025, 17% of cat owners and 14% of dog owners said a vet professional had told them their pet was overweight. PDSA recommends weighing portions, using the feeding guide on the packet as a starting point and keeping treats to no more than 10% of the daily allowance. A feeder makes sticking to that plan easier. Not sure where your pet stands? Try our pet weight checker.

One caveat: a feeder is not a pet-sitter. It cannot spot illness or clear a jam, so we would still have someone check on any pet left overnight.

Automatic pet feeders compared

Specifications are the manufacturers' own; we have not lab-tested them. *On battery backup, the camera and Wi-Fi (Granary Camera) or cooling may not run — only the schedule is guaranteed. Price ranges cover single and dual-bowl or camera versions.

The reviews

1. Petlibro Granary Smart Feeder — best overall

The Granary's 5-litre hopper takes dry kibble from 2mm to 15mm, and the app sets one to ten meals a day of 1 to 50 portions each. Petlibro puts one portion at roughly 20ml, or about 10g — but kibble varies, so weigh a few test portions before trusting the numbers. It works on 2.4GHz or 5GHz Wi-Fi and alerts you to low food, low battery and blockages. Power is a USB adapter with optional D-cell battery backup, and its desiccant bag should be changed every two weeks, Petlibro says. A dual-bowl version splits each meal in two.

Pros: dual-band Wi-Fi; jam and low-food alerts; stainless bowl; battery backup.
Cons: dry food only; desiccant bags are an ongoing cost (6-pack £19.99); app needed for the full feature set.
Best for: one or two pets on dry food, where you want flexible scheduling without paying for a camera.

2. Petlibro Granary Smart Camera Feeder — best with a camera

This is the Granary with a 1080p camera, a 145° lens, night vision and two-way audio. Feeding matches the standard model: 5 litres, 1–10 meals a day, portions of about 20ml, kibble 2–15mm. One catch: it runs on mains with three D-cell batteries as backup (not included), and Petlibro says Wi-Fi and the camera switch off on battery power while scheduled meals carry on. Recordings can go to a microSD card.

Pros: see each meal; two-way audio; local microSD recording.
Cons: camera goes offline in a power cut; dearer at Petlibro.
Best for: owners who work long days and want to see mealtimes happen.

3. Petlibro Granary 2 — best for tracking what is eaten

The Granary 2 adds a scale under the bowl that Petlibro says measures to within 1g, so the app shows what was actually eaten, not just dispensed. It holds 5 litres, has stainless bowls, and offers a normal schedule or a Smart Refill mode that tops the bowl up. Backup is a built-in rechargeable battery; Petlibro quotes both 24 and 48 hours in different places, so treat it as a day or two. The Vision models add a camera with pet recognition, but cloud recording needs a subscription, as do eating-habit alerts (Petlibro Care, from £59.99 a year). It is big (4kg), black only, and not for carpet.

Pros: weighs what is eaten; rechargeable backup; 90-day money-back period.
Cons: the priciest here; best features need subscriptions; kibble limit quoted as both 15mm and 18mm.
Best for: cats on a weight-loss plan, or anyone who wants real intake data to share with their vet.

4. Petlibro One RFID Smart Feeder — best scheduled feeder for multi-pet homes

The One RFID pairs with a single 5g collar tag (no charging), lifts its lid when that pet approaches, and serves scheduled dry meals from a 3-litre hopper. It reads its own tag, not your pet's microchip — spare tags are £14.99 — and two pets need two feeders, at least 25cm apart. It runs on mains with three D-cell batteries as backup.

Pros: stops food theft; timer plus access control.
Cons: collar tag, not microchip; one feeder per pet gets expensive; dry food only.
Best for: a pet on a prescription or diet food living with others who would happily eat it.

5. Petlibro Polar Smart Wet Food Feeder — best smart wet food feeder

The Polar's three 200ml compartments are actively cooled, and Petlibro says food stays chilled for up to 72 hours, with cooling pausing about 30 minutes before each meal. The stainless tray is dishwasher-safe. Cooling needs mains power; three AA batteries (not included) keep the schedule running in a power cut — Petlibro quotes 12 hours in one place and 8 in another. It is not designed for raw food, works best at 12–30°C, and Petlibro suggests picking up leftovers within an hour.

Pros: actively chilled; dishwasher-safe tray; anti-pinch lid.
Cons: only three meals; 2.4GHz only; cooling needs mains.
Best for: cats on wet food who need a meal served while you are out.

6. SureFeed Microchip Pet Feeder — best microchip feeder

The SureFeed is a selective feeder, not a timed one. It reads your pet's identification microchip (or the included collar tag) and only opens its sealed lid for registered animals — up to 32 of them. Because the bowl stays covered, it suits wet or dry food, holding up to 400ml or two pouches. With cat microchipping compulsory in England since June 2024, many cats already carry the key. It runs on four C batteries (not included), which Sure Petcare says last about six months, with a three-year warranty.

Pros: uses your pet's microchip; wet or dry; covered bowl.
Cons: no timer or portion control; no app.
Best for: multi-pet homes with different diets, or keeping the dog out of the cat's food.

7. Cat Mate C500 — best budget feeder for wet food

The C500 is a simple carousel: five compartments of up to 330g wet or 155g dry food, with a digital timer for four meals plus one left open straight away. Twin ice packs under the bowls help keep wet or raw food cooler — though it is not refrigeration, so keep gaps shorter on warm days. There is no app; it runs on three AA batteries (Closer Pets quotes about 12 months, the Amazon listing six), and the bowl and lid are dishwasher-safe.

Pros: cheap; wet, dry or raw; dishwasher-safe.
Cons: four timed meals; no alerts.
Best for: serving one or two wet meals while you are out for the day.

8. PetSafe 5 Meal Pet Feeder — best non-app dry food feeder

PetSafe's carousel has five compartments of up to 236ml each and an LCD timer for up to five meals. It is designed for dry or semi-moist food rather than wet, and the tray goes in the top rack of the dishwasher. PetSafe's support pages specify four D batteries lasting roughly six to twelve months. No app, no Wi-Fi to drop.

Pros: five meals; dishwasher-safe tray; no app needed.
Cons: not for wet food; small compartments for big dogs.
Best for: small meals of kibble for cats or small dogs, without the smart-home extras.

How to choose an automatic pet feeder

Dry or wet food?

Hopper feeders such as the Granary range take dry kibble only, within a stated size range. For wet food you need a carousel with ice packs or a chilled feeder such as the Polar — and follow the food maker's advice on how long opened food can sit out. Our guide to wet vs dry pet food covers the trade-offs.

Portion control

Look for small, adjustable portions and plenty of meal slots — five or more small meals fits International Cat Care's little-and-often advice. Weigh what the feeder actually dispenses for a few days, because "one portion" is a volume. Dog owners can use our dog food calculator as a starting point.

Multi-pet homes and microchips

Dual bowls split a meal but cannot stop theft. For special diets, choose a selective feeder: the SureFeed reads your pet's microchip; the One RFID uses its own collar tag. International Cat Care also suggests feeding cats separately. See our guide to microchipping for more.

Power and backup

A mains feeder without backup stops in a power cut. Most smart feeders here keep the schedule running on batteries, though Wi-Fi, cameras or cooling may stop. Battery-only feeders keep going — just change batteries before a trip.

App or no app?

An app gives you remote feeding, logs and, crucially, alerts if the chute jams or the hopper runs low. The downsides: Wi-Fi set-up (some support only 2.4GHz), subscriptions for some extras, and one more account. A simple timer has less to go wrong but will not tell you when it does.

Cleaning, desiccant and jams

Wash bowls as often as an ordinary bowl; stainless or dishwasher-safe parts help. In hopper feeders, a desiccant bag keeps kibble dry — Petlibro says replace it every two weeks or so. Jams usually come from oversized or damp kibble, so stick to the size range and keep the lid sealed.

Common questions